Once Upon A Time
by muggle405
Summary: Their relationship could best be defined as a series of stolen moments, hushed conversations, and secret kisses. -Excerpt from Chapter 10. AU. Pairings: AC KL
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own GS/GSD or any of these characters**

_Once upon a time, there lived a princess. This princess was as beautiful and kind as all princesses should be, but her life was far from the charmed lives princesses live in movies. You see, this princess had never found her prince charming. Instead, she'd been trapped in an arranged marriage to a man she did not love and who did not love her. _

_

* * *

_

Princess Cagalli Yula Seiran of Orb cringed as she dabbed concealer over the swolen area just beneath her left eye.

Wearing makeup was something she'd never done before her marriage. In the past year, she'd become quite adept at using makeup to hide the bruises left by her absusive husband.

After she finished, Cagalli stepped back to check the final result. The bruise was still faintly visible beneath her makeup if someone really looked for it, but she was satisfied no one would notice it. And if anyone did remark on it, she'd just do what she always did: lie. She'd make up a story about tripping in the dark and hitting it against the corner of her nightstand or something similar.

Frowning, she let her hair down and arranged her bangs to help conceal the mark. Better. Much better.

Whoever said all princesses lived happily ever after should be shot.

When her mother read those fairy tales to her as a child, she'd always taken comfort in the fact that all princesses lived happily ever after. That was not so in her case.

Sure, she'd led a charmed life up to a point. She'd grown up in the palace with both parents doting on her and her twin brother. All that had come crashing down around her when King Uzumi and his wife both tragically died in a car accident when she and Kira were only sixteen.

The King's advisor, Unato Seiran, had taken over the kingdom for a brief period then until Kira reached eighteen and was able to rule the kingdom himself.

Those two years had passed Cagalli by in a blur. She'd still been numb from the loss of her parents. All she remembered was the war with the neighboring kingdom of Zaft and Unato's insistence before he abdicated the throne that she wed his son, Yuna. He'd told her that her father had agreed to the marriage before his death...and she'd believed him. She knew now that her father would never have arranged her marriage to such a monster, but it was too late. The deed had been done.

After checking her reflection once more, Cagalli picked up her hand bag and exited the room. She was already late for lunch with the royal couple.

* * *

_In a nearby kingdom, there lived a young, handsome knight. This knight had been given a special mission by his King that would cause the paths of the two to cross._

_

* * *

_

Four figures crossed the open hall leading towards the Zaft docking bay.

"Don't get yourself killed, Zala," one of the men said as they drew nearer to the aircraft. "When I become the commander of this team, it's going to be because the Council chose me over you, not because you went off and got yourself killed."

"Right, Yzak. I'll try to remember that." Athrun never took his hot-headed team mate's remarks to heart. Sure, they'd had their share of fights, but every member of this team had proven their loyalty time and time again.

"But I thought we were at peace with Orb? It shouldn't be that dangerous." one of the other two men pointed out.

"Right, but that doesn't mean there still aren't a few fanatics out there who will always blame Zaft for what happened. We can't be too careful." the fourth replied.

Aside from Athrun and Yzak, there were two more members of their team: Dearka Elsman and Nicol Amalfi. The four made up the elite security squad formed by the king, Siegel Clyne, after the war had ended. All four of them had fought in the war against Orb and were now considered heroes in their kingdom, Zaft.

Of the other three men, only one would be accompanying Athrun on this trip. That man was Dearka Elsman. The other two were to remain here and protect the King in case anything should happen. If their mission should go astray, it could lead to another war and no one wanted it to come to that. However, it was vital that they get as much information as they could on the recent assassination attempts on their princess...and in this case, that meant going undercover.

Athrun had been selected by the King himself for this mission because of his connection to the target. It was true that the two countries had been at peace with eachother for over a year now, but it would still be a mistake to announce his real reason for travelling to Orb at this time.

Dearka, on the other hand, had been selected to accompany Athrun after Nicol had elected to stay closer to home and Yzak had pointedly remarked that he wouldn't go anywhere with Athrun. Besides, Yzak's arrogance would prevent him from successfully accomplishing his part in this mission.

And so, Athrun and Dearka were preparing to depart for Orb within the hour. They'd already arranged for a meeting with the royal couple as well as the princess and her husband upon their arrival. If all went well, they would be back home within the week.

* * *

_But neither the Princess or the Knight could have foreseen the events that were about to unfold._


	2. Chapter 2

"What do you think is keeping her so long?" the Queen asked, watching her husband over the rim of her teacup as she awaited his response.

Smiling, Kira reached across the table to take his wife's hand in his own before answering, "I wouldn't worry too much, Lacus. You know my sister. She probably just slept in again."

"Hm. I suppose you're right." Queen Lacus Yamato, formerly Princess Lacus Clyne of Zaft, returned her husbands smile and set her cup back on it's saucer.

From where they sat at a small table on the balcony, she could see the entirety of the palace gardens. Lacus loved the view and had often admired it from one of the palace windows until her husband had noticed her infatuation with nature and had the balcony built off their chambers specifically for her. Since then, they'd moved a small table onto the balcony where they frequently took their meals on nice days such as this one.

Kira and Lacus had been married for less than a year. Their marriage had united the two former warring kingdoms, but despite the fact that the marriage had originally been one of convenience for political reasons, the two had fallen deeply in love since.

There had been concerns originally about how the people of Orb would react to their Queen being the Princess of their former enemy, but those concerns had proved unfounded. With her grace, beauty, and kindness, Lacus had charmed them. Everyone loved Lacus.

And that was why it had come as such a shock when the assassination attempts had begun.

Lacus was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of rushed footsteps and Kira's voice saying. "Well, look who decided to finally join us."

"Sorry. I didn't realize what time it was," Cagalli said as she dropped into the only empty chair and reached for a pastry from the plate at the center of the table. Lacus was already pouring a cup of tea for her.

When she was finished eating, Cagalli looked at her twin, curiousity evident. "So what was so important that you had Miriallia wake me so early just to tell me to be here for lunch?"

"I suppose I didn't have to have her wake you right at dawn...It's not my fault the girl took me seriously when I told her to make sure you know first thing in the morning. " Kira couldn't help but smirk.

"Yeah, yeah...get to the point."

Kira glanced at his wife before continuing. "In light of recent events, we've sent word to Zaft requesting assistance. They're sending two members of their top security team to help with the investigation. They'll be here in just a few hours. I'd like you to come to the briefing, so you're caught up with the current situation."

"Sure. No problem." Cagalli agreed. "Wait...which ones are they sending?" She'd met a few of them over the course of the past few months.

"We're not sure. We didn't request anyone specifically." Lacus explained. She knew why Cagalli was curious. The last visit from a member of the team hadn't exactly gone very well.

"As long as it's not the angry silver haired freak...what was his name...?"

"Mr. Joule. Yzak Joule."

"Right...**him.**"

Cagalli infused the word with so much loathing, but Lacus wasn't really surprised. After all, she'd been there when Kira had introduced the two and Yzak has callously exclaimed, "**That's** your princess?" before bursting into fits of hysteric laughter.

On the other hand, she could also understand why Yzak was so surprised to find a princess dressed in jeans and t-shirt while she did her target practice for the day. In her opinion, he was lucky she hadn't turned the gun in her hand on him instead of the target. Of course, Yzak only found it so hilarious because Lacus, as Zaft's princess, had been exactly the opposite of the Princess of Orb, preferring to wear dresses and spend her time singing or in her garden.

"I'm fine with the other two." Cagalli continued. "Nicol and Dearka, right? The ones who covered security at the wedding?"

"Right. But from what I understand, the team has many more members than just those three. Not all of them were at the wedding." Kira looked to his wife for confirmation and she nodded.

"Several were carrying out another mission for my father at the time and weren't able to make it." Lacus explained.

* * *

Several hours later, the three waited in the docking bay for the aircraft carrying a portion of Zaft's security team.

The sun shone directly over head and the heat was stifling. What had started as a nice spring day had quickly turned into what felt like a summer afternoon.

Cagalli reached up to wipe the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand and realized her mistake too late when she saw the makeup that had rubbed off on her hand. She quickly excused herself and went to a nearby restroom to correct the damage before anyone could see the bruise underneath.

When she exited the room five minutes later, the flight had already landed. She'd heard the announcement over the intercom while she was making her way down the hall. Up ahead, she could hear the sound of movement as passengers disembarked. And then she heard it. Lacus's voice as she greeted the new arrivals: "Athrun! It's so good to see you!"

Cagalli's step faltered.

_No...it couldn't be._

She rounded the corner.

It was.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and/or added this story to your alert list! I certainly wasn't expecting so much of a response so quickly. **

**I will hopefully be updating this fic at least twice a week. As a college student, free time is hard to come by, but I'll do my best. **

**Also, to anyone who is interested in AMVs, I am also listed under muggle405 on youtube. I have added four new GS/GSD amvs just this past month. Let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

She still hadn't looked directly at him since his arrival nearly three hours ago. Athrun was puzzled by this, but tried not to show it.

He tore his eyes away from her where she was sitting next to her husband a few feet away. He glanced down at the palace blueprints spread out on the table before him before looking up at Lacus and Kira, who were seated directly across from him at the long conference table.

"What can you tell me about the first attempt?" he asked.

It was Lacus who answered. "Well, I was walking through the gardens in the inner courtyard when it happened. Someone came up behind me and put a hood over my head and started dragging me backwards before I could even react...If it weren't for Haro making such a coomotion and drawing the attention of everyone in the area, he probably would have succeeded."

"I was one of the first people on the scene." Yuna cut in. "I heard the noise from inside my office and came running. By the time we all got there, there was no sign of her attacker anywhere."

Athrun nodded to show that he heard before studying the blue prints once more. "This is the garden you're referring to?" At Kira's nod, Athrun frowned. "And all possible entrances to the inner courtyard are marked on this?" Another nod.

Athrun leaned back in his chair, the frown still there. He looked over at Dearka, who had been standing silently in the corner of the room since they had entered. The location of the attack could only mean one thing.

"It has to be someone in the palace. Someone whose presence near the inner courtyard wouldn't raise any eyebrows. Perhaps one of the nobles or a servant."

"We'd thought as much." Kira agreed. "Several of the nobles lost relatives in the war and could see hurting Lacus as a way to get revenge."

"I'm going to have to ask all of you to keep our reason for being here a secret so we can investigate further. Put the story out that I'm a visiting ambassador from Zaft. That will do well to explain my presence here. As for Dearka," Athrun nodded towards the man in the corner, "he'll pose as one of the servants to see what he can learn from them."

The man in question made a face of disgust, but didn't protest.

Athrun missed the look, having already turned his attention back to Lacus. "Don't worry about it too much. We'll catch him."

"I know, Athrun. I trust you." she said with a smile. The two had been friends since childhood, having both been raised inside of Zaft's palace. Though they had once been engaged, the two were now like brother and sister.

Athrun returned her smile, then looked to where Cagalli was sitting, but her chair was already empty. He saw her silently slip through the door, closely followed by her husband.

* * *

Later that evening, once Athrun was alone in the confines of the room he would be using while in Orb, he slipped a worn photograph from his wallet. He'd carried this picture with him everywhere during the war which accounted for its slightly battered appearance.

He sat on the edge of his bed ass he stared at it. The photo was of Cagalli at age 16, smiling at the camera. This is how she had looked the last time he'd seen her three years ago before the war started.

She looked relatively the same now, perhaps a bit older. However, the smile was no longer there. At least, he certainly hadn't seen it today. And the fiery personality he remembered, where was it? She seemed quieter, somehow more subdued.

He carefully slid the picture back into place before laying back on the bed. He folded his hands behind his head and stared at the cieling, deep in thought.

He remembered the first time he'd seen her. They'd been ten years old and he'd come to stay with his best friend, Kira, for the summer. Back then, she'd been an irritating tomboy, always trailing them around everywhere.

After that summer, Athrun had routinely returned to Orb every other summer since Kira spent the summer with him in Zaft the years in between.

When they were twelve, nothing much had changed. Sure, they were all a bit taller, but history still had a way of repeating itself. That year, he and Kira had built a treehouse. They'd tried to tell her no girls were allowed, but she'd forced her way in anyway.

At fourteen, she'd begun spending time with girls her own age instead. The two boys could hear her up late gossiping with her friends Mayura, Juri, and Asagi late at night. He'd been surprised when he realized that he actually missed having her around.

Sixteen was when the real changes came about.

He almost hadn't recognized her when he first arrived that summer. In the two years since he'd last seen her, she'd gone from the tall, awkward, and freckled preteen he remembered and had turned into one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen.

They'd shared a brief romance that summer.

He'd simply been drawn to her. He would have done anything for her.

And then tragedy struck.

After her parents' tragic death, she'd withdrawn from everyone, including himself.

Soon after, he had to return home when tensions between the two nations began to escalate. He'd written letters, dozens of them. But he'd never gotten any reply.

Once the war began to wind down after Kira ascended the throne, he'd sent one last letter, but, as always, there was no reply.

It wasn't long after that he learned of her wedding to Yuna Roma Seiran, the son of the man who had ruled during the war until Kira was old enough to take over. He'd been devastated to say the least.

And that was why, when given the choice several months later, he had decided to take a mission that would take him out of the country for a while instead of attending Kira and Lacus's wedding with the other members of his team. He couldn't face her then.

He wasn't sure what had made him come this time, other than his desire to help his friends. Her reaction, or rather lack of a reaction, to his presence that afternoon had served in his mind to prove that while he'd never stopped loving her, she obviously didn't feel the same anymore.

**A/N: **

**I will now reply to any reviews left on the previous chapter in the author's note.**

**littlemsstrawberry- I will update regularly. You can always expect the updates to come on either a Mon., Wed., or Fri. as those are the days I take my laptop to school with me. On average, there should be 2 chapters a week. Also, I was rather pleased to see your review as I have been following High School Drama for some time now.**

**Jodeist- as you can see, he did not abandon her. I also loved the random change in tone in your review for chapter one when you went from yelling to 'please update soon'**

**jaja123456- your review absolutely made my day. I laughed so hard when I read your little rant about the cliffhanger ending of the last chapter. Also, to answer your question, I am majoring in Communications with a specialization in Broadcast media.**

**t0gam3- Thank you for your review. I'm glad you enjoy the story.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

Athrun and Dearka had been staying at the palace in Orb for a little over a week and they were no closer to solving the assassination attempts than they were the first day.

The story about Athrun being the ambassador from Zaft had thankfully been accepted without question. As for Dearka, the story was put out that he'd just been hired as the Yamato's new butler.

While Dearka's alias had given him access to all of the other suspects for questioning, Athrun was not finding his job quite as simple. After all, the other servants were more than willing to gossip with the new guy, Orb's nobles guarded their secrets much more closely. And so far, Athrun had only been able to speak to a handful of them in passing.

If he was going to get any information from them, he would need an occasion to gather them all together in a social setting so he could converse with them all without appearing suspicious. He'd said as much to Kira just a few days before.

And that was why the royal couple were hosting a masquerade ball that evening to commemorate the one year anniversary of the day the peace treaty was signed.

All of the Orb's Lords and Ladies would be there as well as many of the military officers who had fought in the war. In short, anyone who might have cause to try to harm Lacus.

Dressed in a black tux, Athrun fastened the simple black domino over his eyes before exiting his room.

Tonight. He would talk to her tonight.

* * *

In her own room, Cagalli was dressing for the ball. She'd gotten a late start due to the fact that she and Yuna had gotten into yet another argument. This one hadn't been nearly as bad as the last. For once, she didn't have any physical evidence that they'd been in another fight and she was thankful for that.

Her husband seemed rather distracted recently, but Cagalli certainly wasn't complaining.

She stepped into her ballgown and turned her back to her maid so that Miriallia could lace the back of the corset style bodice for her.

The gown was made of a pale green silk. It was strapless and had a full skirt overlayed with a transparent fabric shot through with glittering golden threads. The mask covered only half of her face and was the same color as the gown, outlined in gold patterns to bring out her eyes.

Once the gown had been laced, she sat down at the vanity table so that Miriallia could arrange her hair into an elegant coiffure for the evening.

"I don't understand why you don't just divorce him."

Cagalli had heard those words from her maid time and time again. No other servant would dare to speak to any of the royals so candidly, but Mir was special.

Cagalli had known Mir for years. Her mother had been the housekeeper when Cagalli was a child and had often brought her daughter along. King Uzumi had allowed her to be educated along with his children by a private tutor. The two had become close over the years. After the tragedy of her parents' deaths, when all of her other friends had seemed to abandon her, Mir had always been there for her.

When Miriallia's mother had passed due to an illness, Cagalli had offered to let her come live with her in the palace. Mir had resisted at first, not feeling right about imposing on the royal family. But Cagalli insisted and they came to a compromise: Miriallia would come to live at the palace, but only if she was able to do something to earn her keep. And so, she became Cagalli's personal maid, though she never really had anything to do except on nights like this when the princess had a formal event to attend. Otherwise, she was just there to keep Cagalli company, to give her someone to talk to and confide in.

"You know I can't, Mir," she sighed and closed her eyes as she felt her friend's hands pulling her hair up and deftly arranging it as they spoke. "My father worked hard to keep the family name scandal free. A princess can't just divorce her husband. It's just not done. Besides, I gave my word and you know I never go back on my word."

Miriallia frowned. The two had this argument at least once a week it seemed. She'd thought many times about telling Kira what was going on herself, but she knew she would never betray Cagalli's trust like that. Surely he would put a stop to it. "No one would blame you. If you would just tell them..."

"No, Mir. It's only been a year since the war ended. The people need to see the royal family as being united. If the public saw us falling apart like that, it would only cause more fear and dissent. You know as well as I do that there are some people who still support Unato's decision to go to war with Zaft and who resent Kira for offering the treaty. The Seiran's supporters would turn on us in an instant. I can't risk it. Not yet."

Knowing there would be no convincing her this evening, Miriallia changed the subject. "What about Athrun?" She felt Cagalli stiffen when she said the name, but continued anyway. "Have you spoken to him at all since they got here?"

Cagalli's "no" came out as barely a whisper. Sometimes she thought Mir knew too much for her own good. She was the only one to know the truth about her marriage as well as one of the few to know about her feelings where Athrun was concerned.

"And why not?"

"I just haven't. I think Yuna suspects what happened three years ago even though we never went public with our relationship. He's made sure to never leave me alone in a room with him all week."

The two went silent after that as Miriallia put the finishing touches on Cagalli's hair. "All done." she said after a moment, standing back to admire her work.

"Thanks, Mir. It looks beautiful, as always."

"Try to have fun tonight, ok? You deserve to relax for a little while."

Cagalli nodded once before slipping out the door and heading for the grand staircase that would lead her down to the ballroom. She could hear the orchestra from here and knew she must be running even further behind than she'd originally thought. So much for being able to slip in without drawing attention to herself.

* * *

**A/N:**

**This chapter mostly sets up for the next one. I originally planned to put the ball in this chapter, but that was before I wrote the Cagalli and Miriallia scene. I have no idea where the scene came from. There was actually a completely different scene I planned to put there, but I just started writing and that's what happened. The original scene will be in the next chapter. **

**Jodeist- Don't worry, it will be very painful.**

**star101- thank you! I hope you continue to enjoy the story**

**Maria-Reynne- I hate having Cagalli married to Yuna as much as you do, but it's necessary for the storyline otherwise one of my future chapters would make absolutely no sense.**

**littlemsstrawberry- I hope this chapter answered your question.**

**Fire Lady Oren- it is definitely Asucaga. Don't worry, I'm getting there.  
**


	5. Chapter 5

Scanning the crowd, Athrun had yet to find her.

The ball has been in full swing for nearly an hour now. Kira and Lacus had introduced him to Count Mwu La Flaga and his future Countess, a Miss Murrue Ramius, just after he'd arrived.

He'd spoken with them for at least fifteen minutes, but hadn't noted anything suspicious in their behavior. He wasn't just going to discount them out of hand, though. He'd made that mistake before.

Duke Andrew Waltfeld, who he'd met shortly after, didn't seem to be behind the assassination attempts either. The man apparently owned a large plantation somewhere nearby and made his own coffee. Athrun considered himself lucky to have escaped that conversation after about twenty minutes.

Of course, the man's carefree nature could have been just an elaborate ruse to throw him off the trail. Not everyone was who they said they were, after all. Ironic, then, that he should be one of those who wasn't what he said he was. Ambassador from Zaft, indeed.

Athrun hadn't always been this cynical. He could remember the exact day he'd stopped trusting so easilly. He'd made the mistake of putting his trust in the wrong person during a mission and it had cost him dearly: the lives of two team members, Rusty and Miguel.

He would never make the same mistake again. Until the culprit was caught, everyone was still a suspect.

He was so caught up in his own thoughts, that he almost didn't notice Dearka passing him in the other direction, carrying a tray of hors deurves for the guests.

As it was, Athrun looked just in time to see him jerk his head in the direction of the corner of the room furthest from the orchestra.

Obviously there was something there that Dearka thought he should see. He nodded almost imperceptibly to show he'd gotten the message and started off in that direction.

He'd made it about ten feet through the crowd before he caught a glimpse of blonde hair near the doors leading to the balcony.

Perhaps that was what Dearka was trying to tell him?

His heart was pounding against his rib cage as he approached. Like him, she, too, was moving through the crowd towards the other side of the room. He kept his eyes on her as she weaved through the crowd. Once, he thought he'd lost sight of her entirely until he saw the blonde hair once more a mere five feet away from him.

Her back was to him and he reached out to tap her on the shoulder.

He realized his mistake before she even turned around. The hair was the wrong shade, a slightly darker blonde than Cagalli's and the woman was wearing a dark magenta gown, which he knew Cagalli wouldn't be caught dead in. He would have noticed that sooner if his view of her hadn't been blocked by all of the people standing around. He'd been too fixated on following the woman with blonde hair to notice the color of her dress.

He retracted his hand immediately, but it was too late. She was already watching him curiously, probably trying to figure out who he was underneath the mask.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else. My mistake. Please excuse me, Miss-?"

"Loussier. Stella Loussier." the woman supplied, extending one hand.

He bent to kiss the back of her hand. "Athrun Zala, ambassador from Zaft."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Zala."

Loussier...He ran the name through his mind, but couldn't come up with anything. To the best of his knowledge, he'd yet to meet any noble by that name. "I don't believe I've had the pleasure of meeting your husband yet, Ms. Loussier."

She laughed then, a soft sound. "Oh, I'm not married. I'm here with my brothers, Sting and Auel." She nodded towards the two men who seemed to be deep in conversation about something. "They were both soldiers in the war."

Athrun hadn't even noticed the two men prior to that moment. They were at the very fringe of the crowd, where they were hidden from view from msot parts of the room. From where they stood, he could barely make out bits and pieces of their conversation.

"Lord Unato...the right idea..."

"should've wiped them all out when we had the chance"

So that was what Dearka had been trying to tell him. Well, these two certainly seemed suspicious alright. And if they had fought in the war, that certainly gave them motive to want to be rid of Zaft's princess. But he needed to get closer, hear more of what they were saying.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked.

"I'd love to."

As they danced, Athrun steered her closer to where her brothers were still deep in conversation. Just a little closer and he would be able to hear everything...

And that was when he saw her.

He knew, without a doubt, that it was her this time. He'd recognize that smile anywhere, even if her face was hidden beneath a half mask. She was standing with Kira and Lacus, laughing over something one of them must have said. He was watching her so closely, that he missed a step and almost stumbled.

He saw her turn and start to walk away. If he lost sight of her now, he might not be able to find her in the crowd again.

He escorted Stella back towards her brothers. "I'm sorry, Miss Loussier. Please excuse me for a moment."

He quickly located Cagalli in the crowd once more and moved towards her. "Cagalli!"

She turned immediately at the sound of her name. "Athrun?"

And then her husband was there."Oh, there you are, Cagalli, darling. Come along, I want you to meet a friend of my father's." He began to steer her away, one hand gripping her upper arm. He glanced back at Athrun over his shoulder. "Please excuse us, _Ambassador Zala._"

Athrun was too stunned to react for a moment. To have her so close and then have her snatched away again...

He nodded dumbly and watched them disappear into the crowd once more.

When he finally turned to go back and see what he could find out about Stella's brothers, the three had already vanished.

* * *

**Please don't kill me! I had a scene where Athrun and Cagalli actually talk, but it made the chapter far too long for the format I have used so far. I promise it will be included in the next chapter, though.**

**On a side note, Happy Valentines Day, everyone!  
**


	6. Chapter 6

_Every sound seemed to be magnified at least ten times in these cavernous stone hallways. Their footsteps echoed off of the walls; their ragged breathing carried. Every second he feared someone would hear them. _

_They were deep under ground now. There had only been one guard at the tunnel's entrance and he'd been easy enough to dispatch. _

_No one knew what they would find when they reached their destination. Would she be alive? Dead? Was she even here at all? Had she ever been?_

_This mission was of the utmost importance and had been kept a secret from the general population. The king had handpicked these three men for the job._

_Athrun saw a light up ahead and signaled to the other two men to proceed cautiously. With his back to the wall, he looked around the corner to see how many men might be there. He saw none. Only a lone chair with a figure bound to it stood in the middle of the room._

_It was her. It was Lacus._

_But...Not everything is as it seems._

Athrun's eyes flew open. He stared up at the ceiling, recalling his dream.

The masquerade ball had ended perhaps an hour or so before. He'd returned to his room, exhausted. He'd only taken off his mask, shoes, and jacket before collapsing into the must have dozed off, because his light was still on.

He sat up and began to loosen his tie.

It'd been months since he'd had a dream about that night. That was the night his two team mates had died.

A few days prior to that, King Siegel Clyne of Zaft had called the entire special forces team together. The team consisted of six members: Athrun, Nicol, Yzak, Dearka, Rusty, and Miguel.

Princess Lacus's wedding to Kira was scheduled to occur within the week. She'd already arrived in Orb a few days prior to aid in the arrangements for the ceremony. The team was supposed to travel there to provide extra security. However, Siegel had divided the team in two that day. Zaft's department of defense had received something rather odd: photos of the princess bound and gagged in a dark room. They certainly looked real, but how could that be when she was safe in Orb?

The king wasn't going to take any chances with his daughter's safety. Three men would go to the wedding while the other three would follow this new lead. Athrun had been the first to volunteer for the mission, anything to not have to go to Orb and face Cagalli. He wasn't ready for that yet.

He wasn't sure what he'd expected to find, but when they'd come across the room with the woman tied to the chair, he'd thought she really had been kidnapped. She looked like Lacus, sounded like her, spoke like her...but it wasn't the princess. The woman's name was Meer Campbell. She had been hired to lure the security team away from the real princess.

Shortly after they rescued her, they'd been ambushed. They were outnumbered with no hope for survival. Rusty and Miguel had soon perished in the ensuing battle. Athrun was knocked unconscious and taken back to their headquarters. He wasn't sure what they planned to do with him, but Meer had helped him to escape.

She hadn't signed up for this, she said. No one was supposed to die.

He'd been about to ask her who had hired her and why when a shot rang out. She died almost instantly. He was lucky to escape with his life.

He knew why he'd dreamt about that night. After all, hadn't he just been thinking earlier about the reason he no longer trusted so easily? Though now that he thought about it, something else struck him as odd.

She had been hired to lure the team away from the real Lacus which suggested someone was planning to harm her before her wedding to Kira. Perhaps the same person who hired Meer was behind the current assassination attempts as well?

He was in the process of unbuttoning his shirt when he heard the floor of the hall creak outside his room. He could hear footsteps moving slowly towards the other end of the hallway. Could it be the assassin?

The palace had been open to many suspects that evening. It would be a simple matter for the assassin to hide somewhere on the premises until after the ball was over and everyone was asleep, waiting to make their move.

Athrun didn't have to think twice. He pulled his gun from the top drawer of his dresser and followed the sounds through the house.

* * *

After she returned to her room after the ball, Cagalli had been unable to sleep.

He'd been so close...

After laying in the bed for what seemed like an eternity, she rolled out and wrapped a short robe around her body over the cami and shorts pajama set she was wearing. She belted the robe shut and exited her room.

As always, she thanked her stars that she and her husband didn't share a room. Otherwise, she'd have to explain to him where she was going so late at night.

She crept silently down the hallway, the sound of her footsteps muffled by the thick carpet.

She was gett ing close to the stairs when she noticed there was still a light on in one of the rooms. It was Athrun's room.

She hesitated, considered knocking. She had raised her hand to do so when she reconsidered and decided against it. With a shake of her head, she started down the stairs, barely registering the creaking sound they made.

It was around two in the morning now and Cagalli was going to the kitchen for a late night snack. It was something she did often when she couldn't sleep.

The palace chef made amazing tortes and sorbets, but she had always preferred something much simpler: a bowl of ice cream. And that was what she was going to get now. She would be the first to admit she had a bit of a sweet tooth and her husband often criticized her for it, saying that if she continued to eat like that she'd soon get fat.

Well, it would serve him right if she did. Cagalli couldn't care less what he thought of her appearance. But no matter what she ate, she never seemed to gain any weight anyway, so what did a lat night bowl fo ice cream matter anyway?

She shuffled into the kitchen and turned on the small light above the ovens. She was about to open the door to the large freezer when she heard a small sound behind her. She turned just in time to see Athrun enter, gun drawn and pointed right at her.

"Sweet Haumea, don't you ever do that again!" she exclaimed, one hand over her heart as he immediately lowered the gun upon seeing who it was and turned on the safety.

"Sorry. I thought you were the assassin."

She raised an eyebrow. "An assassin going to the kitchen?"

"Poisoning the food, perhaps?" he suggested with a shrug.

"Right..well.." she turned back to the freezer. "What are you doing up?"

"Like I said, I thought you were the assassin. I heard someone creeping around in the middle of the night and came to investigate. You?"

Her reply was slightly muffled as she was still rummaging through the freezer. "Couldn't sleep. I thought I'd come get a snack."

"Let me guess...Ice cream. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough." He watched as she pulled the container from the back of the freezer and laughed. "You're so predictable."

Cagalli stared at the carton of ice cream in her hands and considered putting it back and getting something else after he guessed right, but it was her favorite. Instead, she set it on the counter and reached into the freezer once more.

Athrun turned to go back up to his room now that he knew there was no threat at the moment, but stopped when he heard her speak again.

"You can stay if you want..."

He heard her shut the freezer door and set something else on the counter. He turned to look at her in time to see her reaching into the cabinet for two bowls.

"You still like Cookies n Cream, right?" She nodded to the other container of ice cream she'd just set on the counter.

He smiled. She remembered. He walked further into the kitchen then, watching as she set the two bowls out and opened a drawer to get some spoons.

Her hair was disheveled and fell in long curls down her back from where she'd had it pinned up earlier in the evening and she was in her pajamas, but to Athrun she'd never looked more beautiful.

This brought back memories of the summer they'd spent together three years ago. They'd often snuck down here late at night then. They'd also spent quite a bit of time laying on their backs in the courtyard, looking at the stars as the talked into the early morning hours.

He wished they could go back to that time. Life was so much simpler when they were sixteen. But she was married now. He had to remember that.

Athrun was so caught up in his own thoughts that he barely noticed when she pushed his bowl of ice cream towards him before putting the two cartons away.

Cagalli picked her own bowl up and lifted herself up to sit on the edge of the counter, her bare legs hanging down over the edge. "This makes you think of old times, doesn't it?"

He laughed slightly. If she only knew...

"So...what have you been up to? How have you been?"

He considered the question for a moment before answering. "As well as can be expected I suppose."

"Did you...fight in the war?"

He nodded.

"I figured. What was it like?"

"Terrifying." he answered honestly.

"I thought about you everyday.."

He looked up at her then.

"Wondering if you were okay, mostly." she explained.

"What about you? What have you been doing?"

"Not much of anything really. I was in mourning for my parents for a while. Since then, I've mostly just been helping handle palace affairs."

"Do you still practice your shooting?" he asked, curiously. He'd been the one to teach her to use a gun several years ago.

She shook her head. "No...Yuna...my husband, thought it was a dangerous hobby. He took it away from me a long time ago."

"Do you love your husband?" He wasn't sure what made him ask. He knew he shouldn't, but he wanted to hear the answer.

She stared at him in disbelief for a moment. "What kind of a question is that? You can't just walk in here after three years and ask me something like that."

"You're right. I'm sorry." He frowned. "A different question then...Why didn't you reply to any of my letters?"

Her reply came much quicker that time.

"What letters?"

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**The mission described at the beginning of this chapter is the same mission alluded to at the end of chapter 3 and beginning of chapter 5. **

**Also, if you haven't found it yet, I have written another Asucaga fic, a oneshot called _Forbidden. _  
**

**I'd also like to take a moment to say a very special thank you to two of my readers: littlemsstrawberry, who has reviewed every chapter so far, and Jodeist, who has reviewed 4 out of 5. Thank you for your support. If I didn't know I had such dedicated readers, I probably would have given up on this by now. You guys keep me motivated.  
**


	7. Chapter 7

The door to Kira's office flew open and hit the wall behind it with a resounding crash.

Startled, he looked up from where he was sitting at his desk to see his sister standing in the doorway, looking furious.

It was eight o'clock in the morning. Cagalli had just woken up ten minutes before, rolled out of bed and grabbed the first two articles of clothing she came into contact with: a pair of jeans and a red t-shirt. She'd immediately stormed downstairs to her brother's office despite Miriallia's protests.

"Where the hell are my letters?" she demanded when she located Kira in the office.

Kira let out an exasperated sigh. He knew it would happen eventually. "Cagalli, can this wait? I'm busy at the moment."

For the first time, she noticed he wasn't alone in the office. Across from him sat Lord Sai Argyle, who nodded in greeting. "Good morning, Princess."

Under normal circumstances, Cagalli would have been embarrassed to have someone witness her making a scene like this, but right now she was just too furious to care.

"Fine. I'll wait. But only for ten minutes." she agreed. She heard Kira suggest she go get breakfast and he would meet her in the dining room when he was done. She decided to wait just outside his office instead so there would be no possibility of him sneaking off without talking to her first.

She closed the door softly behind her and leaned back against the wall just outside. Of course, he could always climb out the window. He'd done it before when they were children. Cagalli couldn't imagine him attempting the same feat now.

She could just see the tabloid headlines: "King Climbs Out Window to Escape Irate Princess."

She laughed.

On second thought, just let him try.

* * *

_She hadn't gotten his letters._

The reason she had never responded was because she never got them, not because she didn't want to talk to him.

Athrun couldn't help but smile.

His thoughts were interrupted when Dearka demanded "What the hell are you grinning about, Zala? We're supposed to be working, not daydreaming."

Athrun looked up at his teammate. "Sorry." He pulled a stack of papers towards him and glanced through the contents. "So, let's go over what we know so far."

"Right..Well, we know it's someone with access to the palace from the location of the first attempt."

"Except that wasn't the first attempt." Athrun cut in. "Remember the mission I went on when you were providing security for the wedding?" He continued when Dearka nodded. "I think the two may be connected. Sure, there was almost a year between the two attempts, but I think the same person is behind it."

"So, either we have two different people with the same goal or just one person hiring others to carry out their dirty work."

"Right. If it's still one person hiring others like the first one, then we can just about rule out the servants. There were at least ten men there that night. We're looking for someone who can afford to hire alot of people."

"That still leaves all of the nobles and a few of the military officers." Dearka pointed out. "What about the two men at the ball?"

"I spoke with their sister, a woman by the name of Stella Loussier. I wasn't able to get much information other than they both served in the war. She didn't say anything about them being officers though. However, it's possible that they've been hired to carry out the job. What we need to do is find the person or group that's hired them and we can weed out the others from there. Continue to keep an eye on the servants. There's no telling how many could be in the assassin's pay."

* * *

Cagalli cut the engine in her car and looked at the mansion she'd just pulled up in front of, taking a deep breath.

Her conversation with Kira hadn't been as helpful as she'd hoped.

_Flashback_

_"Letters?" Kira repeated, confused. "I only know about one." He opened the bottom drawer of his desk and rummaged through it before pulling out a slightly wrinkled envelope and handing it to her across the desk._

_She held the letter gingerly with both hands, reading her name on the front written in familiar handwriting before she looked back up at Kira. "Why didn't you give it to me before?"_

_He frowned. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have kept it from you, but it arrived about a week after your wedding. I thought it might upset you."_

_"Do you know where the others might be?"_

_He shrugged. "You could ask Lord Unato Seiran. This was the only one that came after I took the throne."_

_End Flashback_

And that brought her to where she was now, sitting in her car outside of her father-in-law's home. This was the first time she'd come here alone.

She glanced at the letter on the seat beside her. She hadn't opened it yet. She wanted to read them in order and this one had been the last.

Steeling herself for the confrontation, she got out of the car, slammed the door and walked up the front walkway to the front door. She knocked without hesitation and was let in by the butler who informed her that Unato was having tea in the parlor.

She repeated her question from that morning as she walked into the room: "Where are my letters?"

Unato looked up at her, unfazed. "Ah, Princess. How good of you to stop by. Have a seat." He indicated the chair opposite him.

She remained standing. "This isn't a social call, Lord Seiran. I want to know what happened to my letters."

"There's no need to address me so formally, Cagalli. We're practically family. In fact, you can call me Father if you like. "

The way he just sat there sipping his tea as if he didn't have a care in the world infuriated her further. This was the man who had led their kingdom into a two year war, the man who had forced her into a marriage to his monster of a son, the man who had kept her letters from her.

"I will _never_ call you Father. You're not half the man my father was."

He looked mildly offended. "Well, you really are an ungrateful child, aren't you? After everything I did for you and your brother after your parents died..."

"You're saying I should thank you for leading this kingdom into that war? Do you know how many innocents lost their lives just because you wanted Zaft's territory?" She noted that he looked flustered. "Yes, I know the real reason we went into that war. It was your own greed. We'd always been at peace with Zaft until you took over.I never believed your story about King Clyne killing that Duke anyway. I always suspected you'd set it up yourself to give you a reason to attack. And then your own son admitted it all to me when he was drunk one night. Am I supposed to thank you for that? And what about this?" She pulled up the sleeve of her shirt to reveal a bruise that looked oddly like fingerprints on her upper arm from where Yuna had grabbed her and pulled her away at the masquerade ball the night before. "Should I thank you for that too?"

Unato started to mumble some other flimsy excuse before Cagalli cut him off once more.

"My letters, Lord Seiran." she hissed.

"Gone. I burned them all." he admitted, looking smug.

Cagalli's mouth went dry. She'd known that in all likelihood, they would be gone, but hearing it confirmed was another matter entirely.

"It was...inappropriate..for the princess to be communicating with someone like him, a Zaft soldier, during the war. Besides, as long as you thought he no longer cared about you, you had no reason to resist marrying Yuna. My son is a prince now through his marriage to you. I would do it again if faced with the choice."

She wanted to scream at him, hit him, do _something,_but she kept her composure. "I hope you live long enough to regret those words, Lord Seiran." And with that, she was gone.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I had fun writing Cagalli and Unato's conversation even if it did take me forever because I kept going back and changing it. **

**Sorry there wasn't much Asucaga in this chapter, but there will be more in the next chapter. **

**The letter should also be in the next chapter if everything goes as planned.**

**Which brings me to my next point:**

**For those of you interested, I am having a little bit of a contest. When you leave your review, include one line that you would like to see included in Athrun's final letter to Cagalli. I'll work the best one (or two) in. **

**Things to keep in mind: This letter was sent after the two year war finally ended. He had sent many letters prior to this one, but never received any reply.  
**


	8. Chapter 8

Cagalli had never been one to cry, even as a child.

When she was five years old, she had broken her arm when she fell from a tree and hadn't shed a tear. Kira had been the one to cry instead.

The last time she remembered crying had been the day of her parents' funeral. That was a little over three years ago.

Even with everything that had happened in those few years, she hadn't cried once.

And that was why the tears rolling freely down her cheeks now came as such a surprise.

When she'd returned from her father-in-law's house a few hours before, she'd come straight to her room. She'd been there ever since, having not even gone down for dinner.

She looked at the letter laying wrinkled on the bed next to her and picked it up once more, reading it through for the fifth time that night.

_Cagalli,_

_It's been two years since I've heard from you. _

_I hope this letter finds you well. I don't know why _

_you haven't replied to any of my previous letters, _

_but now that the war is over, I would like to arrange_

_to see you again. If you've moved on, I understand and_

_at least we will always have the memories of that summer._

_But no matter what happens, please remember that_

_I love you and I will never stop loving you._

_Yours Always,_

_Athrun_

The tears began to fall again as she carefully folded the letter once more and set it aside.

She was crying for what was and what could have been.

Kira said the letter had arrived just after her marriage to Yuna and obviously Athrun hadn't known anything about her upcoming marriage when he'd written this.

If only the letter had arrived sooner...She was sure she would have gone to see him. She knew they would have been happy together, perhaps even gotten married some day. And then who knows where they would be now.

But it was too late for what ifs.

The facts of the matter were she **hadn't **gotten the letter in time and she **had** married Yuna. There was no going back and changing that, no matter how much she wished she could.

There was nothing left for her to do except...

Cagalli glanced at the letter beside her once more, picked it up, and got up from the bed.

She needed to talk to him, if only to get her closure. It was late, almost midnight, but she hoped he would still be awake as she made her way down the hall towards his room.

When she arrived, she could tell that the light inside was off. That meant he was either already asleep or that he wasn't in his room at all.

She had turned to go downstairs and look for him there when the door opened behind her.

Athrun looked just as surprised to see her standing there as she was to see him standing in the open doorway, shirtless and holding the gun just as he had in the kitchen the night before.

They both stood there in silence for a moment before he broke it, joking, "If you keep wandering around the palace at night, I'm going to start thinking you're the assassin."

"Haha. Very funny." she mumbled sarcastically before turning to leave, completely forgetting that she had been the one to come there to talk to him. The sight of him standing there without a shirt had wiped everything else from her mind.

Cagalli felt him catch hold of her wrist as she began to walk away, heard his whispered plea for her to wait. She did stop and turn to face him again then.

He was watching her curiously, obviously more than a little confused by her prescence outside of his room in the middle of the night. "What are you doing here, Cagalli?"

She hesitated, glancing both ways down the hallway to make sure they wouldn't be overheard.

Athrun understood her cautious behavior and, gently tugging on the wrist he was still holding, he pulled her into his room and quietly shut the door behind them. He flipped the lights back on and returned his gun to its usual resting place before turning to face her again.

She was standing just inside the door, glancing around the room awkwardly. It was neat and if it weren't for the papers spread across the desk, it would look as if no one lived there at all.

After the assassin was caught, there would be no one living there. The thought made the tears well up in her eyes once more. Sweet Haumea, when had she become so emotional?

Athrun approached her then, his concern obvious as he gently put a hand on her shoulder. "Cagalli? What is it? Is everything alright?"

She held up something in her hand in a silent answer to his question.

When he glanced down to see what she was holding, he recognized his own handwriting on the front of the wrinkled envelope. "I see you got my letters** ...One of them anyway."

She nodded.

"So..which one is it?" he asked gently as he began to lead her over to sit on the edge of his bed.

"After the war." she answered simply. She wasn't crying yet, but he could tell she was fighting to hold it back and it killed him to see her like that.

He nodded. He knew exactly which one she meant. He'd agonized over that one for days when he'd written it. He must have written the letter over fifty different ways before finally settling on the one he sent. He'd known it would be his last letter to her and he'd wanted it to be perfect.

There was a long silence as they both sat lost in their own thoughts.

"Did you mean what you said?"

"Hm?"

"In the letter..." she clarified. "You said you loved me...Do you still?"

Athrun looked up from where he had been staring at the carpet by his feet. He put one finger under her chin and gently turned her head to look at him.

"I never stopped." he answered honestly.

And that was all it took for the tears to start again.

Instinctively, he took her in his arms, cradling her against his chest as she sobbed. He pulled her into his lap and just held her, gently stroking her back, until her sobs subsided into sniffles and then quieted altogether.

He continued to hold her in the silence that followed until he heard her speak.

"What happened to us, Athrun?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Life happened."

He wasn't sure what happened next, but the next thing he knew, they were kissing and holding onto each other as if their lives depended on it. And then, just as suddenly, she was pulling away.

He heard her mumbled apology before she bolted out of the room, leaving him just as confused as he had been upon finding her outside of his room earlier in the evening.

He frowned and ran a hand through his hair before noticing something laying on the floor out of the corner of his eye.

It was the letter. She'd left it behind.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Sorry this chapter took so long. I have 5 midterms and 3 papers due this week alone. That, and I've been working extra hours to help save up for my spring break road trip.**

**Anyway, to give credit where it is due:**

****"I see you got my letters" is a line taken from Nicholas Sparks's The Notebook**

**As always, let me know what you think!  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**Previously**:

_"Do you love your husband?" He wasn't sure what made him ask. He knew he shouldn't, but he wanted to hear the answer._

_She stared at him in disbelief for a moment. "You can't just walk in here after three years and ask me something like that."_

_"You're right. I'm sorry." He frowned. "A different question then...Why didn't you reply to any of my letters?"_

_He reply came much quicker that time:"What letters?"_

_

* * *

_

_The door to Kira's office flew open and hit the wall behind it with a resounding crash._

_"Cagalli, can this wait? I'm busy at the moment."_

_For the first time, she noticed he wasn't alone in the office. Across from him sat Lord Sai Argyle, who nodded in greeting. "Good morning, Princess."_

_

* * *

_

_Athrun wasn't sure what happened next, but the next thing he knew, they were kissing and holding onto each other as if their lives depended on it. And then, just as suddenly, she was pulling away._

_He heard her mumbled apology before she bolted out of the room, leaving him just as _

_confused as he had been upon finding her outside of his room earlier this evening._

_

* * *

_

Kira looked down at his watch for what must have been the tenth time in just as many minutes.

Where was she? He knew she liked to sleep in, but on a day like this, it was taking it a bit too far.

He glanced back at his wife who was waiting patiently in the limo for him and smiled apologetically back at her.

If Cagalli didn't hurry, they were all going to be late. He'd started back up the front steps to re-enter the palace and find out what was keeping her when Athrun spoke up from where he'd been standing on the top step, leaning against one of the columns.

"I can make sure she gets there if you want to go on ahead," he offered.

Kira smiled and nodded, "Thanks."

He didn't think Yuna would like Athrun driving Cagalli to the wedding, but he didn't really care what his brother-in-law thought. He didn't know what it was about the man, but something made Kira want to punch the man. He was thankful Yuna wouldn't be joining them on this trip. He'd given some flimsy excuse having to do with his father to explain his absence, but right now Kira couldn't remember what it was.

As he slid into the limo next to his wife, he was thinking how lucky he was to have married Lacus and fallen in love with her when his sister, who had also married for political reasons, hadn't been so lucky.

* * *

Athrun watched the vehicle pull away from the curb and make its way down the long winding driveway before disappearing entirely.

A week had passed since the night Cagalli had come to his room and they had kissed.

The week had been fairly uneventful with the exception of another assassination attempt. The would-be killer had made it as far as the royal bed chamber that time, evidently planning to kill Lacus as she slept.

That had been the same night Cagalli had come to his room and he blamed himself for allowing himself to become so distracted that he hadn't been aware of the assassin's presence in the palace until after the fact.

Thankfully, as before, Haro had noticed the intruder and sounded the alarm. If it weren't for that, there was no telling what could have happened. As it was, Haro had been smashed for his attempts, probably thrown against the wall before the assassin escaped. Fortunately, Athrun had been able to repair him and he was back to bouncing around like the annoying ball of energy he was just as before.

He shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts. Like Kira had done so many times before, Athrun shook back his sleeve and looked down at his watch. What was keeping her?

And that brought his thoughts full circle, back to the kiss. He'd only seen her once briefly in passing since then, but she'd been with her husband at the time. He made a face of disgust without realizing it. There was something about that man that bothered him, aside from the fact that he had married Cagalli. That bothered him, too, of course.

Was it mere coincidence that he hadn't seen her during that week or was she avoiding him?

* * *

She was avoiding him, plain and simple.

Cagalli straightened her dress one last time before deciding there was nothing more she could do to stall and that she would have to go downstairs now. She hoped he wouldn't be there when she did. She was still too embarrassed over what had happened the week before to face him just yet.

If her presence weren't expected at this event, she would have just stayed in bed. She knew he would be attending as well. There'd even been an invitation sent specifically for "The Ambassador of Zaft", which he was supposed to be.

The even they were attending was a wedding. They were traveling to the Allster's country estate in Creek Haven for the wedding of their daughter Fllay to Lord Sai Argyle.

Cagalli supposed his presence in Kira's office that day made sense now. She'd wondered why he was there. Sure, he and Kira had attended the same boarding school, but they'd never been particularly close.

Kira had actually been dating the bride-to-be back then. Cagalli was thankful he got over that. She'd much rather have Lacus for a sister-in-law any day.

Before she knew it, she'd made it down to the entrance hall.

Dearka, acting as the butler that day, opened the door for her when she reached it. She nodded to him in greeting and was amused to note that he looked slightly disgruntled that he hadn't been invited because of his undercover assignment.

She'd made it down the first three steps when she noticed that the limo had already departed.

Well, then. She supposed that solved her dilemma. They couldn't blame her for not coming when they'd left without her. She was relieved she wouldn't have to face Athrun again just yet and was on her way back into the house when she heard the man in question clear his throat just a few feet away.

She whirled around and located him, still leaning against one of the columns, which was why she hadn't noticed him before. Just the person she didn't want to see right now, especially when there was no one else around. She could already feel the blush climbing up her cheeks.

Athrun smiled at her. "They went ahead so we wouldn't all be late," he explained. "Kira asked me to make sure you got there okay." Well, that was stretching it a bit...He'd been the one to offer, after all, but she didn't have to know that. He turned to lead her over to the car he had rented for the duration of his stay in Orb, but she didn't follow.

"I can drive myself." And she started to walk to her own car.

Athrun just shrugged and changed course to follow her instead "Then I'll ride with you. There's no sense in taking two cars when we're going to the same place."

Cagalli stopped and turned to face him abruptly, causing him to almost run into her. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"Not a chance."

"I didn't think so."

* * *

The ride to the wedding was uneventful.

No matter what he tried to get her to talk, she would respond as simply as possible, often witha one word response.

They had eventually decided to take his car and Cagalli sat silently in the passenger's seat, her body turned away from him so that she could stare out of the window the entire ride.

The wedding itself was just as uneventful. Somehow, he'd managed to talk her into dancing with him once, though he knew even that concession on her part had only been for appearance's sake. He'd already danced with Lacus once or twice by that point.

* * *

Kira and Lacus were still at the reception when they departed. The ride home seemed much the same as the ride there until something unexpected happened.

Cagalli tore her eyes away from the window to look after he made what she considered to be a wrong turn. "The palace is that way."

He just smirked. "I know."

"Where are we going?" She thought it was a logical question under the circumstances.

"You'll see."

_You'll see..._What a maddening response.

But she did see. After a few more turns, she started to make sense of the route he was taking.

Did he really remember the way after all these years?

Apparently he did, she found out when he pulled off onto a small gravel road leading into the trees.

After another few minutes the narrow gravel path opened up into a small clearing, completely surrounded by trees.

Within the clearing was a clear pond fed by the waterfall cascading down from the tops of the cliffs. The pond then opened up into a small stream that wound its way through the trees. If one were to follow that stream to its end, they would find themselves at the ocean. Cagalli had never tried to find the source of the stream, for the cliffs were far too high to climb.

It was just as beautiful as she remembered it being, Cagalli thought as she stepped out of the car after Athrun parked it in the shade of the trees. It was like a dream, this secret oasis in the middle of the kingdom.

Once upon a time, this had been their secret place. She could not begin to count the number of days they had spent here having picnics, swimming in the pond, and just exploring the general area. This had been the place they'd shared their first kiss and, she blushed at the thought, the first place they'd made love on a warm summer's night so long ago.

Cagalli looked back over her shoulder at Athrun, to see him leaning back against his car, smiling and watching her intently as she looked around the clearing.

"I bet I can still dive from higher up than you." he said with a smirk, nodding towards the rock outcroppings in the cliff face. He was already removing his shoes and suit jacket as he said it.

She made a face. "No fair. I'm wearing a dress." she protested.

"So?" He was unbuttoning his shirt now.

Cagalli watched as he walked to the base of the cliff and began to pull himself up from one ledge to the next until he finally made it to one of the outcroppings, steadied himself, smiled at her, and then dove.

When he came up for air, Athrun shook his wet hair back from his eyes and looked over to where he'd left her standing on the bank, but she was no longer there. He scanned the clearing and sucked in a breath at the sight of her when he found her.

She'd removed her dress entirely and was climbing the cliff face as he'd done before in only her bra and underwear. Athrun noticed a small bruise on her upper arm as she stopped on the out cropping he'd jumped from, but thought nothing of it. He watched as she looked around from the ledge, then hoisted herself up onto the next one, smirking all the while, before she dove from there.

She came up just in front of him, still smirking as she tread the water. "I win."

He laughed and smiled back at her. "Yes, you did." He watched her for a moment longer, gazing into her eyes, before he bent his head to capture her lips with his.

Cagalli didn't pull away this time. She knew she should, but she didn't want to. Instead, she responded to his kiss with equal fervor. She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that before she felt his hands on her waist and he pulled her body against his beneath the water. They'd been moving backwards towards the bank this entire time and Cagalli wrapped her legs around his waist as her back pressed against the soft bank.

She felt his hand slide up her waist then and come to rest higher up. She could feel the heat of his palm through the wet material of her bra. She brought her own hand up to cup his face as they continued to kiss.

It was when he felt the cool metal of her wedding ring pressing against his cheek that reality returned and he pulled back, keeping her at arm's length. When he heard her soft sound of protest at the loss of contact, it took all he had not to pull her back to him again.

"No..we can't do this. Not here, not now..." He took a deep breath to steady himself. "You need time to think about this."

* * *

The ride back to the palace was a silent one, both of them too caught up in their own thoughts to even think about speaking.

What had just happened?

Athrun knew it was a risk, giving her time to think about it. She could very well just return to avoiding him, but it had to be this way. He couldn't take advantage of her in good conscience. He needed to know she wanted this just as much as he did.

He was so sure that she would start avoiding him again, that he felt his heart skip a beat when he heard the faint knock on his door later that night.

* * *

When Cagalli woke next to Athrun the next morning, she felt nothing but a sense of peace and happiness. There was no guilt for cheating on her husband as she'd thought there would be.

She'd never thought she would be the type to cheat on her husband, but their marriage was nothing but some sort of sick farce anyway. She couldn't make herself feel guilty for this even if she tried, not when it felt so right.

She rolled onto her side and gazed at the still sleeping Athrun for a moment before slowly easing herself out of the bed, being careful not to wake him. She picked up the pieces of her clothing scattered about the room and pulled them on one at a time.

She stole one last glance back at the bed before silently slipping through the door and into the hallway. She looked down both ends of the hallway to make sure no one had seen her exit Athrun's room before making her way back to her own.

Miriallia was surprised to find Cagalli's room empty when she entered the next morning. The bed was still made from the day before, suggesting that the princess hadn't slept there at all the night before.

Uh-oh. That couldn't be good. Cagalli not sleeping in her own bed could only mean one thing: she'd been forced to sleep in her husband's room the night before.

Mir crossed the room to the window and opened it to allow a little fresh air in before she began to arrange the flowers she'd brought with her in a vase on the nightstand.

She would stay there until Cagalli returned. She knew her friend would need someone to be there for her when she returned. If she had spent the night as Miriallia suspected, Cagalli would be in a foul mood this morning as she always was after having to deal with her husband for any extended period of time, particularly for _that_ purpose.

Mir certainly couldn't fault her friend for that. She could never fathom how Cagalli could tolerate him at all, even if it was for the sake of her people. Personally, Miriallia would have let herself burn in hell before she ever would have married that bastard. Granted, Cagalli couldn't have known the kind of monster her husband would become at the time. She'd been too drained from the loss of her parents and the ensuing war to really care much about anything.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. There was one thing, or person rather, that Cagalli had never stopped caring about. And now that very same person was back in her life, staying under the same roof even. Mir found herself wondering briefly if Cagalli had even spoken to him yet. She made a mental note to ask later, but right now there were more important things for her to be concerned about.

Miriallia was so sure that Cagalli would be miserable by the time she finally made it back to her own room, that she was too shocked to speak when the girl in question entered the room moments later with a grin on her face.

It was perfectly understandable, then, that Miriallia's first words were: "Is he dead then?"

That question snapped Cagalli out of her daydreams rather quickly. "Is who dead?" she asked, worry creasing her brow.

"Yuna. Your husband. Is he dead?"

"He wasn't the last time I checked."

"Then what are you grinning about? And where were you all night?"

The room was silent as Cagalli opened a drawer and began to pull out clothes for the day. She glanced over her shoulder to see her maid watching her curiously, obviously expecting an answer.

Her mumbled reply was barely audible. "..I was with Athrun.."

"You were with..." Miriallia's eyes grew to twice their usual size as she put two and two together. "You didn't..."

But her friend's blush told her in no uncertain terms that she most definitely did.

* * *

Athrun awoke to the sunlight shining in through his window. He blinked his eyes a few times, then shut them again before he rolled over and extended his hand to feel the bed beside him.

It was empty, but still warm. She hadn't left long ago then.

He opened his eyes fully and glanced at the digital clock across the room. It was already 8:54. He'd overslept. Not surprising since he'd stayed up most of the night just watching her sleep, too afraid that she might disappear if he closed his eyes even for a moment; too afraid that he might wake to find it had all been a dream.

But even as his eyes slowly came into focus and he sat up, he could see evidence that the night before had really happened, that it hadn't been his own imagination playing tricks on him. No, she had most definitely been here alright. He could still smell her perfume and, if he looked closely enough, a few blonde hairs still clinging to the pillow beside him.

She'd been there. And going off of his current state of undress and the clothes he could see strewn across the room, that part had been real as well.

* * *

The dining room was silent that morning, its only two occupants sitting at opposite ends of the table from each other.

Cagalli was in the process of spreading butter over her pancakes when she heard her dining companion sputter and nearly choke on the sip of coffee he'd just taken. She looked up to see her husband staring incredulously at something he'd just read in the newspaper. She raised an eyebrow curiously.

Yuna looked up at his wife then, demanding, "What the hell is this?"

She didn't have to ask what 'this' was as her husband was already standing and striding down the length of the table to throw the paper down in front of her.

Cagalli merely gave it a cursory glance before replying mildly, "I believe that would be a picture."

"Damnit, Cagalli, you know what I mean!"

"Honestly, Yuna, it was just a dance. It's nothing to get upset over. He danced with Lacus, too, or did you miss that?" She indicated another photograph on the same page. "And last I checked, Kira wasn't down here making a scene about it." She reached for the bottle of syrup and began to pour copious amounts over her pancakes, completely dismissing him from her mind.

"That's different and you know it. The man was never romantically involved with the Queen."

"Actually..." Cagalli had been about to inform him that Athrun and Lacus had once been engaged, even if it had been a political match arranged by their fathers, when the bottle was snatched from her hand. She glared up at him then.

"If you can't control what you eat, I suppose I'll have to do it for you." he said as he screwed the cap back on. "We can't have you getting fat, now, can we? You've already put on a few pounds since we got married."

Cagalli knew that wasn't the least bit true. If anything, she'd lost weight from the stress of her marriage. "Frankly, Yuna, I could really care less whether or not you think I'm unattractive." She took the bottle back then, but didn't pour any more over her pancakes. She'd already lost her appetite. Well, so much for her good mood.

For a moment, Yuna was too stunned to react to her defiance. He stared at her in disbelief as she glared mutinously back at him. He'd already raised his hand to strike her when he heard the door open from behind him and dropped his arm before grabbing the paper and marching back to his own seat. Well, she'd certainly gotten lucky. He glanced at the open doorway to see that new butler...no, he was part of the security team wasn't he? Dearka something or other...What did it matter?

He looked back to his wife's chair but she had already vacated it and was exiting the room even then. He watched her retreating form with disgust. He'd heard about her visit to his father the week before, as well. When had the bitch started to stand up for herself?

**A/N**

**I tried to make this chapter longer, because:**

**a.) I'm going on a road trip to Florida and won't be able to update for at least another week**

**and**

**b.) you know your chapters are too short when you try to check out a laptop from the school library and the guy behind the desk tells you that they're too short. (yes, the guy behind the desk is a friend of mine, so I suppose it wasn't **_**that**_** random, but still)**

**As always R&R! I could use the inspiration and motivation your reviews give me.**


	10. Chapter 10

As was his habit every morning, the first thing Athrun did when he woke up was look to her side of the bed.

Empty.

It had been that way every day since the first morning of their affair. She was always gone by the time he woke up and he hadn't expected this morning to be any different.

He would see her in passing throughout the day and, as always, they would pretend not to notice each other.

That was the hardest part for him. Sometimes, he would catch himself just watching her and he would immediately avert his eyes in the hope that no one had noticed.

As far as he knew, no one had. Well, with the exception of Dearka, who had remarked one day after a long meeting: "You've got a thing for the princess, don't you?"

When Athrun had hushed him, the infuriating man had merely shrugged and added, "Hey, I'm not judging" before walking off.

He'd learned to be more careful since then. If Dearka had noticed, there was every possibility that someone else would, too.

And what if Kira and Lacus were to notice? Or, worse yet, her husband?

_Her husband..._

Athrun frowned.

He never managed to forget that appalling fact for long.

He couldn't place it, but there was something about the man that bothered him. Aside from the fact, that he was married to Cagalli, of course. There was something more.

No, that was probably it: just jealously.

Not for the first time, Athrun wondered why she was even with that man. Obviously she wasn't happy, or she wouldn't have been coming to him almost every night for the past two weeks, now, would she?

He'd soon learned not to question it. Her husband was one subject they never discussed in their late night talks.

Whenever he brought up the subject, she left immediately after. He'd just stopped asking her eventually.

* * *

Cagalli frowned when she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror. All of this sneaking around in the middle of the night was disrupting her sleep and she had the dark circles under her eyes to prove it.

But, Sweet Haumea, it was worth it.

She wished they didn't have to hide their relationship, but there was no other way.

For now, their relationship could best be defined as a series of stolen moments, hushed conversations, and secret kisses.

She was drawn from her thoughts by the sound of her bedroom door opening and closing. There were only two people who would enter her room without knocking: Miriallia or her husband. Fortunately, the light footsteps meant it must be Mir.

Cagalli finished running a brush through her hair and then exited the bathroom.

"What are you doing?" she asked when she caught sight of Mir sitting cross-legged in the middle of the floor with a vase of flowers in front of her. From the way she was glaring at it, she seemed to be fighting a losing battle.

"Arranging flowers." was the reply she got as Miriallia pulled several from their place and put them back in a different spot.

"Well, yes, I got that, but why?"

There was more rearranging before Miriallia replied. "They're for Kira and Lacus's anniversary, but I can't seem to get the arrangement right. I need to get them done soon so I can put them out on the balcony before they go to eat brunch."

"Well, why don't you try this?" Cagalli pulled one rather large rose from the arrangement, and made room for it in the center.

They both stared at it for a moment.

"I guess that does look better, doesn't it?" Miriallia admitted.

Cagalli watched as Mir began to cut ribbon from a spool to tie around the vase before she got up.

"I'm going to breakfast. I'll be back later if you need anymore help."

* * *

Athrun was finishing dressing for the day when he heard a knock on the door. Three short knocks, a pause, and then two more.

He knew who it was before he even opened the door, because that knock was one the entire Zaft special forces team had always used.

What he wasn't expecting, however, was Dearka's black eye.

Athrun glanced down the hallway, then opened the door wider for Dearka to come in, asking, "What happened to you?" as he shut the door behind him.

"This?" Dearka shrugged. "I tried to hit on one of the maids. Y'know, Miriallia? She's the Princess's personal attendant or something like that. Turns out she had a boyfriend, a butler by the name of Tolle Koenig, and he didn't like that very much."

"You're an idiot."

"Can you blame me? We've been here over a month now and we're still no closer to catching that damn assassin than we were on day one. At this rate, we're going to be stuck here a while. By the way, I did some research on those three from the ball." Dearka tossed a file he had been holding to Athrun, who caught it and began to read the first page.

"Stella Loussier, Sting Oakley, and Auel Neider...So, they're not siblings then?"

"Not by a long shot. They were all raised in the same orphanage, though. Apparently all three lost their parents in the first war between Orb and Zaft, before King Uzumi took over. If that's not a motive, I don't know what is."

"Do you have an address?"

"On the last page. They all live in a house down by the beach according to my sources. I figure you can stop by, claiming to have been smitten by the girl after you met her at the ball a few weeks ago." Dearka smirked. "It should get you in the house to have a look around at least."

Athrun nodded. "Right. I'll follow up on this later this afternoon."

* * *

When Athrun entered the dining room a short time later, it was to find it void of all occupants except for two: Cagalli and Yuna, who were seated at opposite ends of the table as usual.

Where were Kira and Lacus?

Oh...right. Their anniversary was today, wasn't it?

He could just turn around and leave. He didn't think they had noticed his presence yet. Yuna was reading his paper and Cagalli was doing her best to ignore her husband.

He was about to do just that when he was stopped by Yuna, who had unfortunately picked the wrong moment to look up from his paper. "Do join us, Mr. Zala." he said in a dry tone.

Well, hell. So much for not being noticed.

Cagalli's head snapped up when she heard the name. Their eyes met briefly as Athrun made his way to one of the seats about halfway down the table before she looked down again.

"Have you made any more progress in the investigation?" Yuna asked after Athrun was seated.

"I'm following up on another lead later today, as a matter of fact." he replied cordially.

"Oh?"

"We're looking into three suspicious individuals we encountered the night of the ball. Dearka recently acquired their address and brought me the file this morning."

"From the night of the masquerade ball?" Yuna repeated incredulously. "And it's taken you this long to locate them? And here I thought you were supposed to be the best of Zaft's security."

Cagalli, who had remained silent up to that point, cut in then with "I'm sure they're doing all they can, Yuna."

This brought the attention of both men to her immediately. Her eyes automatically went to Athrun, but she corrected herself and turned to her husband instead.

"Cagalli, darling, you look exhausted. Perhaps you should go back to bed?" Yuna suggested.

She gritted her teeth. Why was it he could never address her without saying 'Cagalli, darling'?

Unfortunately, he was right. She did look exhausted. Hadn't she thought so herself when she saw the dark circles in the mirror this morning?

Fine, she'd leave the dining room since that was obviously what he wanted, but she'd be damned if she was going back to bed.

* * *

Athrun was definitely irritated when he exited the dining room a short time later.

He'd like to see him do any better at catching the assassin.

He was so caught up in his thoughts, that he wasn't really even paying attention to his surroundings as he made his way back to his room to retrieve the file. That in itself was unsual for him since one of the very first things the Zaft military taught you was to always be aware of your surroundings.

This disregard for that lesson was the reason he was so surprised when a hand latched on to his wrist and he was pulled into a small broom closet off to the side.

"What did he want?" Cagalli asked immediately after shutting the door behind them.

"Well, hello, to you, too." Athrun joked. "Why are we in a closet?"

Cagalli shrugged. "I knew you'd have to pass by here whenever you left the dining room and the maids have already cleaned this floor,so they won't be opening it for any reason." she explained. "Now answer my question."

"He just asked more about the investigation and threw in a few more casual insults. The usual."

She frowned. "I'm sorry."

He wanted to ask her again why she was married to that man, but already knew what the result would be. He'd be standing alone in a dark broom closet in a matter of seconds, so he settled instead for, "It's not your fault."

They were both silent for a long while after that, though neither moved to open the door.

It was Cagalli who broke the silence, saying softly, "Do you ever wonder what would have happened to us if my parents hadn't died...if that war had never started?"

"All the time." he answered honestly.

And then his mouth was on hers and there was no more room for conversation or thought.

* * *

It was when they were straightening their clothes a while later that they heard the scream.

**A/N:**

**Take that, Fanfiction Error #2!**

**If any of you are having the same problem, read this post:**

**.net/topic/20103/39964105/1/**

**As always, R&R**


	11. Chapter 11

_Dead._

No matter how many times she said it, it still didn't make sense.

He couldn't be dead. It wasn't possible, and yet she had seen it with her own eyes.

She had to accept it: Tolle was gone and he was never coming back.

The thought brought on a fresh batch of tears and Miriallia wondered briefly how she could still have them after all the crying she'd done so far.

She was sitting in the corner of the meeting room, having already given her account of what had happened.

* * *

Miriallia had finished the flower arrangement shortly after Cagalli went to breakfast and had been ready to take it out on the balcony when she'd bumped into Tolle in the hallway.

He was on his way to the same place so that he could have everything set up for the royal couple's brunch before they returned from their walk in the gardens.

Miriallia hadn't noticed anything suspicious in the chamber.

She'd held the door open for Tolle as he wheeled the cart in and towards the balcony.

The double doors to the balcony were standing open, allowing a warm breeze into the room, but that wasn't unusual.

She was about to go out on the balcony to place the vase of flowers she was still carrying in the center of the table when Tolle realized he'd forgotten the pitcher of orange juice in the kitchens.

"I'll get it," she volunteered. "You can go ahead and set the table."

She heard him thank her as she was heading back the way she came. She paused briefly to set the vase of flowers on a nearby table and that was when she heard the sounds of the plates Tolle had been carrying crashing to the floor.

She whirled around then and saw him locked in a struggle with a masked assailant who had apparently been waiting just outside of the doors on the balcony.

"Run, Mir!"

She heard him, but the meaning didn't register. She was frozen in place as she watched the gleaming knife in the assassin's hand plunge into Tolle's stomach. She saw the blood pouring from the wound, staining everything it came into contact with. She saw the assailant twist the knife before pulling it out as Tolle collapsed to the ground.

She heard the screaming then, but didn't register that she was the one screaming. She dropped to her knees there, in the middle of the room, as the tears poured from her eyes.

The assassin had already started for her. There was no hope of escape, but then there were the sounds of running footsteps outside in the hall.

The door opened and banged against the wall behind it. When Miriallia looked up, the assassin was gone and Athrun was running past her and onto the balcony, where he found the rope that the assassin had used to escape.

She barely noticed Cagalli dropping down onto her knees beside her. She felt the other girl's arms go around her, and then she fainted.

Dearka entered next. He took one quick look around the room, then followed Athrun down the rope.

Kira and Lacus, who had heard the scream from outside, took longer to arrive on the scene, and Yuna arrived even later.

Athrun and Dearka had returned while later, both winded, but empty-handed. They'd lost track of their prey in the woods at the edge of the palace grounds.

* * *

All of that had happened several hours before and now all seven of them were gathered in the meeting room.

Miriallia wasn't paying attention to what was going on around her anymore, was simply staring blankly ahead of her, reliving the events of the day. She could hear raised voices, but didn't try to distinguish who they belonged to or what they were saying.

After a moment, she felt a hand gently touch her shoulder and looked up to see Dearka standing in front of her with a concerned look.

"Come on, I'll take you back to your room."

She nodded numbly and allowed him to help her up.

With one arm around her shoulders, he gently guided her from the room.

As she moved past the rest of the group, she vaguely noted that it was Yuna who was yelling.

* * *

"How do we know they're not the ones behind this?" Yuna demanded. "What if they're just trying to frame Orb so that they have a reason to attack us?"

"Oh, yes, Yuna, they're trying to kill their own princess to restart the war." came Cagalli's sarcastic reply.

"Well, can they account for their whereabouts?"

Since Dearka had just exited the room, this was directed at Athrun, who just glared back at him. Well, he couldn't very well say "I was in a closet with your wife," now, could he? That would go over well.

"Athrun and Dearka were the ones who went after the assassin." Kira pointed out, calmly.

"And yet they didn't catch her even though they were so close behind? They let her escape!"

No one questioned Yuna's use of the feminine pronoun to describe the culprit. Both Athrun and Dearka had agreed the figure had been far too small to be a man.

"Yuna..." This warning came from Kira, who was seated at the head of the table with one arm around Lacus, who still seemed to be in shock.

"We lost her in the forest. We told you that. By the time we made it to the other side, she was gone. She probably had someone waiting for her on the other side."

Of course, when he'd realized it was a woman that they were chasing, Athrun had immediately jumped to the conclusion that it was the girl from the ball. The other two men could have been waiting for her in a car just outside the forest.

He'd mentioned this to the others already, of course. Dearka had been in agreement. They'd wanted to pay a visit to that address they'd acquired, but then Yuna had started in on them, and that was where they were now.

"This is ridiculous. We're wasting time arguing about this when we should be following up on that lead," Cagalli cut in when it looked like Yuna was about to say something else. "What if they go into hiding now that one of them has been seen?"

Athrun wasn't concerned about them changing locations. He'd taken Dearka aside earlier and asked him to find a reason to leave the room, get the address, and go stake out the house. Shortly after, Dearka had offered to escort Miriallia back to her room, giving him the excuse he needed. Athrun had every confidence Dearka was on his way to the house now, if he hadn't already arrived.

When he started paying attention to the conversation around him once more it was just in time to hear Kira say: "I trust Athrun with my life and, by extension, with Lacus's life. And as he seems to trust Dearka, I have a hard time believing he'd be involved in any of this either. I believe they're behind this just about as much as I would believe Cagalli is trying to kill Lacus."

Silence followed that remark until Yuna broke it, saying, "Well, she could be. After all, she might as well have been the queen until you married Zaft's princess."

Outraged gasps followed that remark just before two of the men shot to their feet.

The bastard could accuse him all he wanted, but Athrun would be damned if he was going to let him insinuate that Cagalli was behind the assassination attempts.

He was about to say as much when he noticed the woman in question giving him a warning look and mouthing the words 'sit back down.'

Kira, who had also stood up after that accusation, was looking murderous. "You're out of bounds, Lord Seiran."

Lacus, meanwhile, was gently pulling on his sleeve, trying to get him to sit back down as well. "Kira..."

Athrun was about to resume his seat and let Kira handle the matter when he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the digital display. Dearka.

He quickly excused himself from the room as he flipped the phone open and put it to his ear.

"Did you find them?"

_"Yeah, I found them all right."_

"Well?"

_"It doesn't look like they're planning to skip town anytime soon. I parked in front of one of the other houses, but I can see in through what appears to be the living room window."_

"And?"

_"She's having tea and the two men are playing cards."_

Silence.

_"They're certianly not acting like people who just murdered someone."_

"No, they're not..." Athrun replied after a moment, before lapsing into silence once more.

_"Athrun?"_

"Yeah?"

_"What do you want me to do?"_

"Stay out there for a few more hours, see if you notice anything odd. They may just be waiting for nightfall."

The two exchanged a few more words before Athrun hung up and slipped the phone back into his pocket. He reached out to open the door and almost ran into Yuna, who was in the process of storming out. He quickly stepped to the side to avoid a collision and watched as the other man continued past him and up the stairs at the end of the hall, muttering to himself the whole way.

How odd.

When he re-entered the room, it was to find the other three gathered around one end of the table, so he took a chair on that end as well.

"That was Dearka." he explained when the others all looked at him curiously. "He's staking out the suspects' house now, but they don't seem to be doing anything suspicious." He sighed. "I hate to admit it, but I think we may be following the wrong lead. I asked Dearka to stay out there a while longer to be sure, though."

"We were just discussing the possibility of Lacus returning to your homeland until we can put this entire episode behind us," Kira informed him. "If it comes to that, I'd like for you to escort her there since I won't be able to leave the kingdom at a time like this."

Athrun nodded solemnly. "I understand. We'll make sure she gets there safely," he promised, but he couldn't help but feel that he'd failed in his mission. Lacus shouldn't have to leave her home and her husband behind. It was his fault that they hadn't been able to catch the assassin sooner. If they had, then it wouldn't have come to this. And now he had the death of Tolle Koenig on his hands as well.

"Actually...well, what if...no..."

Everyone directed their attention to Cagalli, who had been the one to break the silence.

"What if what?" Lacus prompted.

"It was just a thought I had...I mean, what if we tried to lure the culprit out? We could put out the word that she's leaving the kingdom for an unspecified amount of time and that she's making one last public appearance to give a speech or something before she leaves..The assassin will think they only have this one chance left, which almost guarantees that they'll show up, then all we have to do is catch them red handed."

"Actually, that's not a bad idea." Athrun agreed.

"No. I don't want Lacus to put herself in danger like that." Kira interrupted.

"She wouldn't have to." Athrun responded, calmly. "We would just need someone to stall long enough for us to search the perimeter and catch our killer. Now, we just need someone who would be willing to take that risk."

Cagalli was quick to volunteer. "I'll do it."

The response from both men in the room was unanimous and adamant: "No."

"But it was my idea..."

"No."

* * *

**A/N:**

**Well, what do you think?**

**I wrote the majority of this chapter while I was running a 102 degree fever, so I'm sorry if it doesn't make much sense. **

**On a side note, this story is nearing its end. There will probably be a total of 15 chapters, possibly 16, depending on how much I'm able to fit into one of them and whether or not I think I need an epilogue.**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this fic thus far. I really appreciate your support. **

**Reviews make me happy and make me want to write more, so, as always, R&R!**


	12. Chapter 12

The grand ballroom was stifling that summer afternoon.

Not surprising, Cagalli thought, as she surveyed the crowd that had gathered to witness the Queen's farewell speech before her departure to Zaft.

A week had passed since the last assassination attempt, the day that Tolle had died.

Despite staking out the suspects' house overnight, Dearka had been unable to find any evidence pointing to the guilt of the three inhabitants and preparations had gone ahead to carry out Cagalli's plan of luring out the culprit.

They'd waited a week for the actual event to give time for word to spread that the Queen would be making a royal announcement. No one knew for sure what the speech would be about, but, with the help of Miriallia, who was anxious to see Tolle's killer brought to justice, they began to spread rumors around the kingdom that Lacus would be leaving for an unspecified amount of time.

Judging by the number in attendance, those rumors had been successful.

Given the warm weather, the event would normally have been held outdoors in the court yard. However, given the situation, they had all agreed to host it inside instead, where it would be easier to monitor those entering and exiting.

The grand ballroom of the palace had been chosen in order to accommodate the large numbers. It had to be aired out beforehand, due to the fact that it hadn't been used in quite some time. The masquerade ball held a few months prior had been in one of the lesser ballrooms.

In fact, the last time this ballroom had been used was nearly three years ago. It was a day Cagalli would never forget, the day of her parents' funeral.

She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and glanced around the room once more. She could see guards posted at each door, carefully checking each person who entered.

At the door closest to her was Kisaka, the head of the Royal Guard. He nodded to her briefly when he noticed her gaze and she wasn't surprised to note that he still looked displeased with her.

Well, he wasn't the only one.

Both Kira and Athrun had protested when she'd suggested using herself as bait as well. They'd each made several attempts to dissuade her from her plan since, but still, here she was.

She wasn't exactly sure how she had persuaded them to let her go through with this plan, though it was rather grudgingly on their part.

She'd simply had to make them see there was no other way.

Allowing Lacus, herself, to take the stage was out of question, of course. In fact, she wasn't even on the premises at this point in time, having been smuggled away earlier in the day.

Kira had wanted to go with her to guarantee her safety, but it was imperative that he been seen at the palace. After all, everyone assumed once they saw the King, that the Queen must be somewhere nearby. They didn't want to risk the assassin realizing their target's absence and recognizing the trap.

Instead, Dearka had gone with her as extra protection. They'd left before dawn, along with Miriallia, who was going to hide them in the house she had shared with her mother before she moved into the palace. They would be brought back later, after that assassin had been caught, so that Miriallia could identify the person who had murdered Tolle.

With their absence, a finite number of people who knew the real reason for this gathering remained at the palace.

Other than those who had been in the room at the time Cagalli had suggested the plan, the truth was only known to Dearka, Miriallia, and Kisaka, who the twins felt could be trusted. Like Athrun and Kira, Kisaka had protested the plan, which explained the look he had given her.

She sighed and redirected her attention to the other side of the room, where she saw Kira conversing with one of the nobles. As the time to enact their plan drew nearer, she noticed that he looked more nervous.

Cagalli noticed Athrun's absence from the room, but she already knew he was securing the perimeter with a few men from Kisaka's team before she took the stage. Once that was done, no one would get in or out until the assassin was caught.

Sighing, she took a step back so that she'd be able to see the door better to know when he reentered and gave her the signal to go ahead, only to nearly run into her husband who had just come up behind her.

"Well, where is she?" he demanded, impatiently.

"She's probably on her way down now," Cagalli said simply. She felt no need to explain Lacus's absence to him of all people and had not even bothered to tell him of the plan at all since he had already left the conference room by the time it was brought up. To tell him, she would have to have talked to him, and talking to him was one thing she'd rather not do if she could avoid it.

She heard his aggravated sigh behind her. "We were supposed to start ten minutes ago," he complained.

Ten minutes ago? Had that much time really passed?

She wasn't that surprised by the delay. After all, she knew both Kira and Athrun hoped the assassin would be caught before she ever had to put herself at risk.

Cagalli looked to the door nearest to her once more just in time to see Athrun slip through with a nod to Kisaka before his eyes went straight to her. He looked like he was about to approach her before he caught sight of Yuna behind her and thought better of it. He nodded instead to let her know it was okay to go ahead.

She quickly excused herself and began to make her way to the steps leading up to the platform. She knew there was an assassin somewhere in the building and she couldn't deny she was nervous as she mounted the stairs, despite the fact that she knew that she was not the one that they were after.

She tried to look calm as she took her place at the podium and waited for the noise in the room to die down.

In the brief moment that she stood there, she was taken back to the last time she had stood on this very platform. Kira had been beside her then, their parents' caskets behind them as they received the funeral guests who came in a steady line to offer their condolences.

There wasn't much Cagalli remembered of that day from three summers ago, having been in a bit of a daze for most of it.

She remembered the room was packed, even more so than it was now. The sheer number of mourners had been the reason the funeral had been held here in the grand ballroom. No church in town would have been able to seat so many. Even in this cavernous room, the funeral had been standing room only.

She also remembered how cold she had been, despite the number of people and the fact that it was the middle of summer.

So, why was it so hot today? The number of people in attendance was perhaps half that of the funeral and the air conditioning in the palace worked extraordinarily well. They'd even cleaned the air ducts for this ball room and tested the air flow when they'd opened it five days before and everything had been fine.

It was in that moment that the shocking realization hit her.

The air ducts. They hadn't secured the air ducts.

It would be a simple matter for the assassin to slip in from the outside and wind their way through the ventilation system until they found a vantage point to shoot from.

The assassin was there, she was sure of it. But how to tell the guards without alarming the citizens and causing the assassin to open fire?

Even now, the people were quieting down, waiting for her to speak.

She did the only thing she could think of. She looked directly at Athrun, who was stationed near one of the doors and cut her eyes towards the air duct above his head, then looked back at him once more.

He looked confused at first, but she knew the moment he made the same connection she had.

She watched as he quickly made his way to Kisaka. She saw Athrun say something quietly, then saw Kisaka's stunned face.

She needed to create a distraction. She needed to keep the assassin's attention on her.

Again, Cagalli did the first thing she thought of. She pretended to faint.

Chaos ensued as the volume of the crowd rose and several people rushed onto the stage to help her.

The first words she was able to distinguish were Yuna's grating voice exclaiming "Cagalli, darling, speak to me!" as he shook her after lifting her half up from the stage.

She was thankful to hear Kira's voice next as he pushed his way to front of the crowd and gently took Cagalli from Yuna before ordering everyone to give her some space.

She was careful to lay still and keep her eyes closed as she felt Kira positioning her so no one would see her mouth move as she spoke. He knew the faint had been a ruse. Cagalli was simply not the kind of girl to faint for any reason.

"What is it? What happened?" he asked urgently in a voice so low that no one else would hear.

"The air ducts," she whispered in reply.

Kira was silent for a moment, stunned. "Well...hell."

* * *

Several hours later, the four members of the royal family as well as Athrun, Dearka, and Miriallia, were seated in the dining room.

With the exception of Lacus, who was drinking tea, everyone had a mug of coffee before them. It'd been a long day for all of them and it ws getting late.

Athrun and Kisaka had caught one man, who'd given his name as Sting Oakley, in the air ducts with a sniper rifle aimed at the podium, just waiting for Lacus to appear. A second man by the name of Auel Neider had been arrested by the palace guards who had seen his dark form drop from the air duct outside the palace and onto the ground before making his way towards the high wall. The third assassin, Stella Loussier had been found about ten minutes later, waiting in a car on the other side of the palace walls.

They hadn't asked Miriallia to identify her, however, once she returned with Lacus and Dearka, as there wasn't much of a point.

When the car had been surrounded by members of the Royal Guard who each aimed a gun at her and demanded she exit the vehicle, she had pulled her dagger instead, but had made no move to attack any of them. Instead, she plunged the dagger into herself, more afraid of the painful death that she would suffer at the hands of the soldiers than of killing herself.

The other two had been locked in a holding cell, where they would stay overnight to await questioning in the morning.

Athrun let out a breath and leaned back in his chair, eyes closed as he brought his fingers up to gently massage his temples. He opened his eyes after a moment and looked at the faces of each of his companions, who all looked equally as tired as he was with the exception of Yuna, who just looked disgruntled for some reason.

There was something other than exhaustion in everyone's expression, though. Every one looked relieved to have this whole situation resolved.

He was as happy as any of them to be able to put this behind him except for the fact that he knew soon he would be returning to Zaft. He glanced at Cagalli and briefly wondered if he could convince her to go with him, but knew that it was impossible.

As the silence in the room continued, Cagalli was also thinking about Athrun's imminent departure. She knew there was no chance of being able to go with him and wondered briefly if she could find a reason for him to stay.

"Well, I suppose now is as good a time as any to tell you..." Lacus began into the silence, gaining everyone's attention immediately. "I didn't want to worry anyone before, but..." she grinned, "I'm pregnant."

The only noise in the silence that followed that announcement was the sound of Kira's coffee mug shattering as it hit the floor echoed around the room, letting them all know he had obviously not been aware of this fact before now.

Then the congratulations began.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I know this chapter was a along time coming. Please don't kill me. I'm down to my last two weeks of college before summer vacation, so I've been slammed with papers, exams, and presentations. **

**On a side note, one of those presentations was for my media class. We had to create our own piece of media, so I made a GSD amv. It's available on youtube. The title is Heroes of SEED Destiny and my screen name is muggle405. I'd appreciate any comments you'd like to leave on it =)**

**Additionally, please check my profile and cast your vote in a poll posted there.  
**

**As always, R&R! And thank you to all of you who have already reviewed. I will include a full list for special thanks at the end of the final chapter.**

**Oh, and is anyone else following the royal wedding? Only 4 more days!  
**


	13. Chapter 13

**Warning: This chapter features two deaths and an attempted rape, not to mention some inappropriate language. Read at your own risk.**

* * *

"What do you mean they're dead?"

The shout broke the silence of the conference room early that morning. The sunlight was streaming through one of the windows, illuminating the room and the three men in it.

Dearka shrugged. "Dead, deceased, no longer breathing. Take your pick."

Athrun let out a long sigh as he leaned back in his chair and brought a hand up to massage his temples. After a moment, he opened his eyes once more, waiting for him to continue.

"I haven't seen the bodies yet myself, but I hear it's pretty gruesome." Dearka nodded to the third man in the room, the source of this information.

Kisaka slid the folder he'd been holding down the table to come to a rest before Athrun, who opened it and began to flip through its contents. Inside were the coroner's report and photos of the scene. Gruesome was an understatement.

"It appears to have been a murder-suicide. The older one..." Kisaka glanced down at the report to confirm the name, "Sting... seems to have strangled the younger one," he indicated the dark bruises around Auel's throat in one of the photos, "then used his own belt to form a noose and hang himself from one of the rafters." Here, he pointed to the belt itself which was sealed in an evidence bag. Dried blood was crusted on the edges where it had dug into the man's flesh.

Somehow, Athrun found he wasn't at all surprised by this turn of events. Everything that could possibly go wrong with this investigation had gone wrong. Wasn't that Murphy's Law? Irrelevant now.

Their trap had worked. They'd caught the assassins and in less than twelve hours, all three were dead. A coincidence?

He remembered seeing the body of the young woman, Stella, who had pulled her own dagger on herself when the guards surrounded her.

Had they made a pact to take their own lives if they were caught? Or was this the work of a third party, trying to silence them before the interrogation?

But, if that were the case, why hadn't the guard reported seeing or hearing anything unusual?

No matter how he looked at it, none of it made sense. And they were no closer to learning of the group's motives than they had been before they knew who the assassins were.

He slammed his fist down on the table, muttering a few choice swear words as he did so.

"Yes, that does about sum it up, doesn't it?" Dearka smirked.

* * *

Nearly a month had passed since that morning.

Lacus was beginning to show and now that Kira had gotten over the initial shock, it was obvious that he couldn't be happier. The two were currently on a short vacation on the other side of the kingdom.

And best of all, there had been no more attempts on her life since the capture and subsequent deaths of Stella, Sting, and Auel.

Athrun was running out of excuses to extend his stay in Orb and it was for that reason that he and Dearka would be departing later that afternoon.

He rolled onto his side to look at Cagalli's empty side of the bed...only to find that it wasn't empty.

He blinked. When he opened his eyes, she was still there, watching him curiously. He wasn't imagining it then.

Well, this was different.

"Good morning," she whispered.

He smiled and cupped the back of her head in his hand, pulling her against him for a kiss. He broke it after a moment and looked into her eyes. "What are you still doing here?"

"I didn't feel like leaving yet." Cagalli sighed and shifted her position slightly, resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, one hand absentmindedly stroking her bare back.

"I wish you didn't have to leave so soon." she said after a moment.

"I wish you'd come with me."

She smiled sadly. "I can't..you know I can't."

"I know, but it doesn't mean I have to like it."

"I'll write." she promised. "And you'll come back soon, right?"

"The first chance I get."

* * *

Miriallia was coming down the hallway when she saw Cagalli sneaking out of Athrun's room later that morning. She rolled her eyes and fell into step beside the princess.

"You know, if you don't want to get caught, you should probably check the hallway a little better before you leave." she said, smirking.

"It doesn't matter anymore. They're leaving today." Cagalli said with a sigh as they drew closer to her bedroom door.

The first thing she noticed when she entered her room was that it wasn't empty. Her husband was there, sitting on the end of her bed.

He looked directly at Miriallia who had entered behind Cagalli, ordering her to leave.

Miriallia looked to Cagalli, then reluctantly left after her nod.

"Where the hell have you been?" Yuna demanded the second the door closed behind her.

"Breakfast." Cagalli responded simply as she crossed to her dresser, looking in the mirror above it as she removed her earrings.

"Since 3 am this morning?" She could tell from the sound of his voice that he was coming closer to her, but chose not to turn to face him just yet. "Because that's how long I've been here, Cagalli." She felt his hand gripping her arm before he spun her around to face him. He was just inches from her face and she could smell the alcohol on his breath.

"You're drunk."

"I'm not stupid, you know. Those are the same clothes you were wearing last night, aren't they? You've been with that damn bastard from Zaft all night, haven't you?"

"Yuna, I..." she tried to push past him, but he backhanded her, sending her sprawling to the floor.

Her head hit the corner of the dresser on her way down. She was unconscious, but only for a moment before she was pulled to her feet and dragged towards the bed.

* * *

Miriallia was only two steps away from the door when she broke into a run.

She needed to find help and she needed to find it fast.

The man was drunk. The evidence of that was in the empty bottle that lay forgotten at the foot of the bed, not to mention the putrid smell of his breath which had carried even to her as she stood in the doorway.

He was a man capable of terrible things. She knew that. But today...today he looked like a man capable of murder.

She was running past the opening of another hallway when she noticed motion out of the corner of her eye and skidded to stop, breathless.

The man was at her side almost instantly, looking concerned as he helped to steady her.

"What is it? What's happened?"

* * *

Cagalli was pinned to the bed and her shirt was ripped down the middle, but she was still fighting tooth and nail.

"So you'll have sex with that man but not with your own husband? You're nothing but a dirty little whore," he was saying as one of his hands closed over her throat, forcing her to hold still. "I could have him killed, you know."

Her vision began to blur after a moment. She was losing oxygen fast.

She twisted her body, trying to dislodge him, but to no avail. He was simply to heavy.

She needed a weapon.

The lamp. There was a lamp on the nightstand. If she could reach it, she could use it to knock him out or disorient him at the very least.

Her fingertips barely brushed the cold metal of the lamps base. She stretched, straining to put her hand around it and then it was gone.

Cagalli had a moment of confusion when the lamp seemingly disappeared before she heard a sickening thump and Yuna collapsed on top of her, dead weight pinning her down.

Then, just as suddenly, he was hauled off of her and she saw her saviour, lamp in one hand and the back of Yuna's shirt in the other.

Dearka dropped the remains of the lamp to the floor, then unceremoniously dropped Yuna back onto the bed face down after Cagalli scrambled out of the way. He removed his own jacket and handed it to her to cover up with.

She pulled it on over the tattered remnants of her own clothing and looked at Miriallia, who was standing near the door, wringing her hands. She was grateful to her friend for bringing help. She looked back at Dearka, who was crouched next to the bed, checking Yuna's pulse.

"Still alive. Just unconscious." he said after a moment.

Cagalli nodded. "Thank you...both of you." Her voice was slightly hoarse and she brought her hand up to her throat. It would probably bruise, but the damage could have been much worse.

"Don't mention it." Dearka shrugged as he began to gather the larger pieces of the broken lamp. "I don't know how long he'll be out for though. You need to get dressed. Miriallia can help you gather what you need."

* * *

Athrun was in the process of packing his own belongings when he heard the knock at the door. He recognized it as Dearka's knock. He closed his suitcase and flipped the latch before going to answer the door.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to find not one, but three people gathered outside of the room. He stepped back from the door as Dearka gently pushed the two women into the room ahead of him before looking carefully both ways down the hallway and closing the door behind him as he, too, entered.

Athrun watched all of this in confusion, a bemused expression on his face. "What's going on?" He looked from Dearka, who was still standing guard at the door, to Miriallia, whose presence in his room confused him the most, before his eyes finally came to rest on Cagalli, whose cheek was slightly swollen by this point. He gasped.

He was at her side in moments and barely registered Dearka's explanation at first and his expression darkened when he heard what he was telling him. "I'll kill him," he growled, starting for the door.

Dearka blocked his way and his stance by the door made much more sense in that instant. He wasn't trying to keep anyone out. He was trying to keep Athrun in. "Dammit, Athrun, he's a prince. You can't just kill him. He'd have you executed before Kira could get back to do anything about it."

"Not if I kill him first." Athrun insisted, but he didn't attempt to exit the room again. He knew Dearka was right. This wasn't their kingdom. There wasn't a damn thing he could do until Kira returned. He hated feeling helpless. He ran a hand through his hair and put an arm around Cagalli. "Then we'll just have to take them back to Zaft with us."

Dearka nodded. "I thought the same thing."

Cagalli shook her head. "No, I can't leave...Kira won't be back for a few more days, and the kingdom..."

"Dammit, Cagalli, the kingdom will be fine until Kira and Lacus get back. It's your safety I'm worried about. Do you know how I would feel if something happened and I wasn't here to protect you? Please, just come with us. We can get a message to Kira so that he knows you're safe."

Her eyes met his and she hesitated a minute before nodding. He took her in his arms and she couldn't help but start to cry.

"He knows about us.." she said between sobs. "He said he could have you killed.."

He ran his hand up and down her back soothingly and rested his chin on top of her head. "Shh..It's okay...I'm here, we're both safe..."

Dearka cleared his throat. "I hate to interrupt, but...He's unconscious for the moment, but we don't know how long that'll last. And he's going to call for the guards the second he's up. We don't have much time."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Miriallia, who had been silent up to that point, asked.

"Does Kira know your handwriting?" Athrun asked her.

"Yes, I think so."

"Good. There's some paper in the top left drawer. Write a note for the King and Queen, but don't give any specific details just in case it's intercepted." Athrun watched her for a moment before looking at Dearka who was studying the blueprints for the palace.

Dearka strode across the room to the window on the far wall. He pulled back the edge of the curtain and scanned the courtyard below, which was empty for the most part. He knew from looking at the palace blueprints that there was a hidden door built into one of the walls for emergencies. Well, he'd call this an emergency. He liked his head where it was, thank you very much.

"Since we obviously can't just walk out of the palace with them without raising suspicions, Athrun and I will leave as planned to return to Zaft. Cagalli and Miriallia will sneak out through the courtyard exit." He looked over his should at the two women, who both nodded. "We'll leave first. Make sure at least one of the servants sees you in the palace after we leave, then head east once you're out of the palace. We'll meet you at the edge of the trees." He started for the door.

Athrun held Cagalli a moment longer before pulling back and looking into her eyes. "I love you, Cagalli. I always have and I always will. Everything is going to be alright."

She smiled back at him, tears still glistening in her eyes. "I love you, too, Athrun. Please...be careful."

He pulled her back to him, kissed her passionately, and then left with Dearka.

* * *

Zaft's docking bay was empty save for two men that warm summer's evening. The sun was beginning to set and Nicol watched the glow of the fireflies begin to appear as he waited for the arrival of the aircraft carrying the other two members of his team.

He looked down at his watch, then over at his silver-haired companion, who was leaning back against the car they'd arrived in with his arms folded over his chest.

"They should be here in five minutes."

Yzak nodded curtly, still staring straight ahead.

Nicol sighed. His companion had been furious ever since they'd been given the assignment to come pick Athrun and Dearka up when they returned, a task he deemed beneath him. His anger only increased every time they were told the arrival had been delayed yet again.

Patience was not a virtue that Yzak had mastered.

When a uniformed soldier approached them, Nicol worried momentarily that Yzak might strangle the man if he told them the arrival had been delayed yet again. Fortunately, that wasn't the case. The flight was expected to land any minute and the loud sound of the plane's engines confirmed that only moment's later.

Nicol visibly relaxed as they watched it land about fifty yards away until he saw Yzak begin marching determinedly towards it.

Athrun was the first to exit the plane.

Before his feet touched the ground, Yzak was already shouting, "Dammit, Zala, what took so long? You were supposed to be here hours ago!"

"We had to take a few detours. Just to be sure we weren't followed."

Nicol followed after Yzak. "Why? What's going on? King Clyne won't tell us anything. All we know is that you caught the assassins weeks ago, but now Orb's princess is...missing..." He trailed off as he caught sight of the princess in question being helped down by Athrun.

Yzak stopped dead in his tracks. "You didn't..." He turned his attention to Dearka, who was now exiting the plane. "Tell me he didn't..."

"That would be a lie." Dearka replied as he turned back to help Miriallia down.

* * *

**A/N:**

**So, the scene with Nicol and Yzak at the end has actually been written for almost 2 months. It was just a matter of writing the rest of the chapter.**

**I'm sorry this update took several weeks, but I appreciate everyone's patience. I also apologize for the OOCness in this chapter.  
**

**I know some of you have found it already, but I created a trailer for this fic. It's on youtube under the title 'Asucaga Trailer- Once Upon a Time'.**

**Also, special thanks to Lynca Blanchard who inspired me to sit down and write this chapter. **

**As always, R&R!**

**Thanks again to all of you who have already reviewed. I will include the full list at the end of the final chapter.**


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